Why are developers bringing us back a generation?

In the past few years the trend for releasing classic old games in shiny new HD has risen dramatically. So too has the release of prequels to classic series like Halo and Deus Ex been on the rise. So why is the gaming industry taking us back to the start of the last generation of games? Is it a step back in development or a way to remember better times?

But devs who are doing these hd remakes are the ones who can take the risk of spending a lot of money.

Also remakes has been coming for the last 10 - 15 years. Its not anything new.

But there is a demand for it. Since its the first time remakes or re-releases whatever u want to call them, are coming out in hd. As well as collecting trophies/achievements for popular last gen games.

Gamers want it, developers want to sell it, its a fast process, win win win for most of us.

Like Godmars290 said, a lot of them are playing it safe. Proven formula creates limited risk. Also, a lot of HD remakes are in preparation for sequels/future titles such as ICO/SoTC for Last Guardian. Its an expensive but effective marketing tool.

Personally I welcome some of the remakes like Persona 4,Final Fantasy X,Metal Gear Solid 3 and Halo.Those games symbolize the creative flair that the industry once had.However I know they are cash-ins and offer little to gamers now.

Porting a game to HD is MUCH less expensive than authoring a new one. The only development resource required is engineering, with maybe some artists thrown in, if a high-quality HD upgrade is desired.

This small team of folks are also able to usually crank out these ports, in less than 1/3 to 1/4th the time of a "real" HD game, yet the titles probably garner 1/3rd to 1/2 the income that a "real" HD game would. 1/3rd the income for what is probably 1/8th to 1/10th the cost (smaller team * less time) -- pretty good deal for the publishers. On top of all that, the dev houses that make HD remakes usually have NO rights whatsoever to the IP, and are basically doing the job for a one-time dev contract (just to keep their studio busy in these tough times). All of the profit, hence, belongs to the publisher alone.

Cult classics are pretty much guaranteed to sell enough copies to make the publisher money. Making the books look good is pretty important, particularly in these bad economic days -- hence, HD remakes.

This guy seems to think everyone has their old consoles and will set them back up and play them again. A lot of people don't have an old console. These HD remakes are great. There are extras with most of them like trophies. The games are cheaper too. Nobody says you have to buy them.

How come people complain about these HD remakes and re releases. They compllain about God of War Sly Metal Gear and Final Fantasy 10. But how come no one complains about the releases of CoD every year. It's pretty much the same thing as all these remakes. But no none of these articles ever brings up cod.

This is easy. Because game development companies don't want to risk creating a new IP that may fail. This would cost them a lot of money. And in an age where game companies are disappearing at the drop of a hat with risky business decisions I don't really blame them from a business standpoint. So in turn they look for an alternative and go to franchises that are, or were, popular. It is much easier to revitalize an already existing franchise than to create one completely from scratch.

As a gamer I would prefer new IP's. But also I don't mind if they use existing franchises as long as they improve upon them or do something completely new with them. I love the new Deus Ex game. I never even got a chance to play the old ones, so I am happy they made that prequel. But at the end of the day I just want to play good games. As long as they are good and provide good story telling that is deep I am a happy guy.